The Wholeness of God’s Love

Do you know God’s love tonight?

Body

Ephesians 3:14–21 CSB

14 For this reason I kneel before the Father 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. 16 I pray that he may grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with power in your inner being through his Spirit, 17 and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and firmly established in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love, 19 and to know Christ’s love that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us—21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Point #1 - Receive Power in your Inner being through His Spirit

Ephesians 3:14–17 CSB

14 For this reason I kneel before the Father 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. 16 I pray that he may grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with power in your inner being through his Spirit, 17 and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and firmly established in love,

What’s inner-being mean?

The deepest part of our soul receives power by knowing the love of God

Power in our emotions and how we handle our day

Power in knowing where to turn when things get tough in your life

Remember the context, Ephesian Christians were:

Living in a city with many worldviews

These were making their way into the church

Paul wrote Ephesians to the Christians in Ephesus to remind them that through God’s love you have strength in your inner being!

That no matter how hard culture presses up against you, having God’s love in your heart will keep you strong

Do you have God’s love in your heart?

When I was younger, I had a notorious issue of not keeping my bedroom clean, there would be clothes all over the floor, propel water bottles, you name it and it was probably in my bedroom floor. When I was younger my parents built a home and we moved in and some time went by and I fell back into my habit of keeping my bedroom dirty.

Over time, Mom would have family over and allow them to explore the entire house and get a house tour, except when they got to Brenden’s room, the door would be shut, the rooms filthy, and deep down in my heart I felt embarrassed with how my bedroom looked.

It’s often the same thing in our relationship with God isn’t it?

We will allow God to see the pretty parts of our soul, but there are some rooms in your soul that you’ve locked the door and thrown away the key to. It’s so filthy, it’s so nasty, and deep down it makes you feel embarrassed so much that you won’t let anyone in.

but I want you to know this, that the God of the universe wants to kick down every locked door in your inner being and to become your Lord fully.

I can promise you this, there can never be a room in your soul that is to filthy, to nasty, or to embarrassing for God.

He wants to fill you with His love.

Will you let him?

Will you stop guarding the door and let God come in and give you his love

Transition: When we fill our inner being with the love of God, we are filled with the power of God that gives us strength in the darkest moments of our lives.

Point #2 - Understanding the length, width, height, and depth of God’s love

Ephesians 3:18 CSB

18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love,

In order for God to dwell in our inner being, we have to know God’s love, do you know God’s love?

1 Corinthians 2:13–14 CSB

13 We also speak these things, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual people. 14 But the person without the Spirit does not receive what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated spiritually.

The danger of not knowing God’s love

is we blame him for the evil in the world

is we forget what God did for us by sending Jesus

is we try to make it through life on our own

This passage tells us we need to have the spirit of God in order to understand God

when you don’t have the spirit of God, the love of God is so foreign to us that we think its foolishness.

It does not make sense.

Earthly love is circumstantial, but God’s love is constant.

play guitar, mess up a few times and talk about how little sense playing the guitar makes, but then explain once you understand the guitar, it makes beautiful music.

When we think of God and his huge love for us, it doesn’t make sense, but when we begin to understand the height, width, depth, and length and the wholeness of God’s love for us it beautifully transforms us.

God’s love is so limitless and full that the beauty of it is that it reaches you wherever you are, but it doesn’t leave you there.

When Christ’s love comes into your life it changes the way you are.

It makes you stop thinking in a self-centered way and start thinking in a God-centered way!

Do you know the love of God?

Transition: When you truly recognize the love of God, the wholeness of it. It is beautiful.

Point #3 - May be filled with the fullness of God

Ephesians 3:19–21 CSB

19 and to know Christ’s love that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us—21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

We are never nearer Christ than when we find ourselves lost in a holy amazement at His unspeakable love.

John Owen

Share my testimony of not being filled w/o Christ / Compare to woman with issue of blood

In order to be truly filled we must know Christ’s love!

John 3:16 CSB

16 For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

Spiritual maturity is recognizing the wholeness of God’s love in our life and allowing His love to shape you

Do you know the love of God tonight?